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Alan Kay begins graduate school
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Alan Kay's Dynabook and the start of portable computers
Starts with Alan Kay's concept of the Dynabook and then lists other portable computers that were created after the Dynabook concept. -
Alan Kay begins working on portable computers (FLEX machine)
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Alan Kay thinks of the idea of the Dynabook
"He wanted to make A Personal Computer For Children Of All Ages—a thin portable computer, highly dynamic device that weighed no more than two pounds."
http://history-computer.com/ModernComputer/Personal/Dynabook.html -
Alan Kay meets Seymour Papert and works on LOGO programming language
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Alan Kay earns his master's degree and PhD
University of Utah College of Engineering
-http://history-computer.com/ModernComputer/Personal/Dynabook.html -
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Xerox Alto Prototype
Alan Kay's idea led to the creation of the Xerox Alto Prototype. (Was originally called the interim Dynabook)
-http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dynabook
-http://history-computer.com/ModernComputer/Personal/Dynabook.html -
Dynabook described in article and presented in ACM National Confrence
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IBM 5100
A portable computer introduced in September 1975, six years before the IBM PC. It was the evolution of a prototype called the SCAMP (Special Computer APL Machine Portable) that was developed at the IBM Palo Alto Scientific Center in 1973.
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IBM_5100 -
Xerox Note Taker
Only ten prototypes were built, but it influenced the Osborne 1 and Compaq Portable computers.
-http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xerox_NoteTaker
-http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_laptops -
IBM 5110
The IBM 5110 was announced in January 1978 (3 years after the introduction of the IBM 5100). Its main differences were support for more I/O devices (floppy disk drives, IEEE-488, RS232, ...) and a character set (EBCDIC) which was compatible with other IBM machines. These improvements made it partially incompatible with the IBM 5100.
-http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IBM_5110 -
HP series 80
The Hewlett-Packard series 80 of small scientific desktop computers was introduced in 1980, beginning with the popular HP-85 targeted at engineering and control applications. They provided the capability of the HP 9800 series desktop computers in a smaller package including storage and printer, at half the price. Ultimately, the market for desktop computing would go to IBM PC compatible personal computers.
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HP_series_80 -
Osborne 1
Commercially successful portable microcomputer. It weighed 10.7 kg and ran the CP/M 2.2 operating system.
-http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osborne_1 -
GRiD Compass
Enclosed in a magnesium case, it introduced the now familiar clamshell design, in which the flat display folded shut against the keyboard. The computer could be run from batteries, and was equipped with a 320×200-pixel electroluminescent display and 384 kb bubble memory. It was not IBM-compatible, and it was limited to specialized applications. It was used by the U.S. military and NASA on the Space Shuttle during the 1980s. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_laptops -
Compaq Portable
the first product in the Compaq portable series to be commercially available under the Compaq Computer Corporation brand . It was the first IBM PC compatible portable computer.
-http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compaq_Portable -
Epson HX-20
simple handheld computer, it featured a full-transit 68-key keyboard, rechargeable nickel-cadmium batteries, a small (120×32-pixel) dot-matrix LCD display with 4 lines of text, 20 characters per line text mode, a 24 column dot matrix printer, a Microsoft BASIC interpreter, and 16 KB of RAM (expandable to 32 KB).
-http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_laptops -
Bondwell 2
CP/M laptop. Used Z-80 CPU running at 4 MHz, had 64 K RAM and, unusual for a CP/M machine, a 3.5" floppy disk drive built in.
-http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_laptops -
Macintosh Portable
Designed to be used on the go. Was praised for its clear active matrix display and long battery life, but was a poor seller due to its bulk.
-http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_laptops -
Alan Kay starts work on Squeek programming system.
Alan Kay's continuation of the Dynabook concept
-http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dynabook -
first working prototype of Dynabook
inspired the development of the first desktop personal computer, graphical user interface, multimedia, as well as laptops.
http://history-computer.com/ModernComputer/Personal/Dynabook.html -
Apple Powerbook
Pioneered changes that are now standards on laptops, such as room for a palm rest, and the inclusion of a pointing device.
-http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_laptops -
IBM RS/6000 N40
Based on a PowerPC microprocessor running the AIX operating system, a variant of UNIX. It was manufactured by Tadpole Technology.
-http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_laptops -
Windows 95 operating system
A significant turning point in the history of notebook computing. In August of that year Microsoft introduced Windows 95. It was the first time that Microsoft had implemented the advanced power management specification with control in the operating system. Prior to this point each brand used custom BIOS, drivers and in some cases, ASICs, to optimize the battery life of its machines.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_laptops#IBM_RS.2F6000_N40 -
Intel Pentium processor
Windows 95 also ushered in the importance of the CD-ROM drive in mobile computing, and initiated the shift to the Intel Pentium processor as the base platform for notebooks. The Gateway Solo was the first notebook introduced with a Pentium processor and a CD-ROM. Also featuring a removable hard disk drive and floppy drive, the Solo was the first three-spindle (optical, floppy, and hard disk drive) notebook computer, and was extremely successful within the consumer segment of the market. -
IBM ThinkPad 380
A notebook computer manufactured in 1997 by IBM as part of their ThinkPad laptop series. Notable for incorporating a CD-ROM and a floppy drive,[1] it was considered a mid-range laptop by IBM at the time, and sold well.
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IBM_Thinkpad_380 -
SIMpad
A portable computer developed by the company Keith & Koep by order of Siemens AG, with an 8.4" TFT touchscreen. Commonly used with wireless network cards, it was marketed as a device to browse the World Wide Web. Initially announced in January 2001 at the Consumer Electronics Show, the SIMpad was not very popular in the mainstream US market.
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SIMpad -
Microsoft's tablet PC
A term coined by Microsoft for tablet computers conforming to a set of specifications announced in 2001 by Microsoft, for a pen-enabled personal computer, conforming to hardware specifications devised by Microsoft and running a licensed copy of Windows XP Tablet PC Edition operating system or a derivative thereof.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dynabook -
Netbooks
Omitted certain features (e.g., the optical drive), featured smaller screens and keyboards, and offered reduced computing power when compared to a full-sized laptop. Over the course of their evolution, netbooks have ranged in size from below 5" screen diagonal[3] to 12".[4] A typical weight is 1 kg (2.2 pounds). Often significantly less expensive than other laptops
-http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Netbook -
Smartbooks
A mobile device that combined certain features of both a smartphone and netbook computer, promoted in 2009 and 2010.[1] Smartbooks were advertised with features such as always on, all-day battery life, 3G, or Wi-Fi connectivity and GPS (all typically found in smartphones) in a laptop or tablet-style body with a screen size of 5 to 10 inches and a physical or soft touchscreen keyboard.[2]
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smartbook -
iPad
A line of tablet computers designed and marketed by Apple Inc., primarily as a platform for audio-visual media including books, periodicals, movies, music, games, apps and web content. Its size and weight fall between those of contemporary smartphones and laptop computers.
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IPad
